The Tech4o Traileader 1 watch is a relative newcomer to the multi function outdoor watch market. It’s got all the standard features one would expect from a watch in this category including an altimeter, barometer, compass, thermometer, and chronograph. Oh, it tells time too, in two different timezones no less.

However, the one thing that sets this watch apart from others in it’s class is the fact that it will measure distance while you’re walking or running. You’re probably thinking, wait a minute, GPS devices are not allowed in adventure races, and you’d be right. But this watch doesn’t use GPS, or a foot pod for that matter. Somehow Tech4o has included a tiny accelerometer inside the watch and it counts strides, and when calibrated to ones stride length, it measures distance.

Being somewhat skeptical of the accuracy claims, I set out to calibrate and test the Traileader 1 to see exactly how good it is. Using a treadmill at the gym, and the stride length calculator on the Tech4o web site, I figured out my walking and running stride lengths, and then proceeded to run on the treadmill for about a mile. Not surprisingly in the controlled environment the watch was only several hundredths of a mile off the distance reported by the treadmill.

The real test would be outdoors. Why not jump into a race with it, and so I did. I wore the watch for the Currahee Duathlon and wanted to see what it would tell me. We started out with a short run, which I was told was .389 miles each way and that seemed about right. After that, we jumped on bikes and I quickly realized that the watch wasn’t going to measure cumulative running distance when jumping on and off a bike all day. By the end of the race I had logged 27.6 miles, which was obviously way off. Of course, this isn’t the watches fault, it’s operator error.

Leaving the pace counting on while riding a bike aside, I did find I was paying attention to my stride length while running more than I typically did. On steep uphills, the stride naturally shortens so the watch will over report distance, while striding it out downhill it will under report. To get accurate distance readings I think one would have to calibrate the watch to the particular terrain one usually runs in, possibly with an accurate trail map, or maybe a GPS. Of course with a trail map or GPS you may not get an accurate distance either as neither would account for distance traveled in the vertical direction.

All this being said, I think my main use of the distance function will be to pace count checkpoints from a known location, and usually for distances under 1 km. I haven’t tried yet, but I think it will get me as close or closer than the guesstimation I do in my head without having to keep track of counting, navigating, and looking for a checkpoint.

Enough about the distance, what about the usability? I used to be the kind of guy who would pour over the instruction manual for any new gadget I got, learning what every button press, menu and setting would do. As I’ve matured, I’ve either raised my expectations, or become lazy, as I expect to pick up a device and want to be able to “get it” without having to look at a manual if that’s possible. I’m happy as the Tech4o engineers have done a good job. With the Traileader 1 I was able to figure out most of the watch without consulting the manual.

There are 2 main menus one has access to, the first including the time based functions (time of day, 2 alarms, count down timer, stop watch, and dual time) and the other holding the outdoor functions (altimeter, barometer, speed/distance and compass). Scrolling through these can be done in two different methods and it is easy to find the function one wants. Compared to the older High Gear altimeter I had, this is much better way to pack more features into a watch. I’d say it compares favorably to the Suunto Core that I have been using for the last couple years.

For those that have used a Suunto Core, the biggest thing I like about the Traileader is that the stopwatch on the Traileader is actually usable. The Core stuffs the stopwatch display in row of tiny numbers under the time making it virtually impossible to read while moving. The Traileader has nice big numbers and can be read with a quick glance.

The size of the Traileader is the same as the Core, but the weight is slightly less as it uses more plastic in the construction. I don’t notice the Traileader nearly as much as Core while wearing it. Comparing the Traileader 1 to the Traileader Jet, I think I prefer the traditional LCD as opposed to the black face. It isn’t as stylish, but I find it easier to read at a quick glance. The functionality of both models is the same, so it comes down to personal preference of looks when choosing between the two. The Traileader Pro has a similar look to the Traileader 1, except with green highlights, but it also adds heart rate monitor functionality as well as PC sync to download workout information. I’d love to try one of these out, but as a Mac user at home, I’m going to have to see if the software would run using emulation, or just have to find a Windows PC to download the data and hope I can port it to my software of choice. I realize that Mac’s are quite as ubiquitous as Windows computers, but there are a fair amount of us out there and it bugs me that we can’t get a software driver.

All in all, I’ve found this watch to be a worthy companion on the trail. As with any tool, it is only one of many that we have at our disposal and with further experience I’ll learn how and when to really trust the distance measurements. Until then, I know I can rely on the accurate altimeter and the other easy to use features on the Traileader 1.